29 Dec 2013 / NY Post – Shave and a haircut — two bitcoins?
Sure, its value might rise and fall by the day, but some small-business owners in New York City are buying into bitcoin by accepting the buzzed-about currency at their brick-and-mortar locations. They’re saying the benefits are many, and the disadvantages are next to none.
That’s right, the digital currency — infamously linked to the purchase of drugs and guns — isn’t just for buying illegal goods anonymously online. It’s becoming a preferred method of payment for innovative business owners.
Daniel Lee, owner of Greene Ave. Market in Fort Greene, is even incentivizing with a 10-percent-off discount offer for customers who pay with bitcoin.
Accepting bitcoin is “very low-risk for the merchants,” according to Greg Schvey, co-founder of digital currency research group The Genesis Block.
In April, EVR “gastro-lounge” in Midtown became the first brick-and-mortar location to accept bitcoin. Operating owner Alex Likhtenstein says the fact that EVR is able to process bitcoin with a minimal fee of just 1 percent (compared with the up to 3.5 percent that some credit cards charge), is one upside.
Due to coverage of the volatility in the value of bitcoin, many don’t view it as a payment method but as a speculative currency…… Read more
http://nypost.com/2013/12/28/nyc-retailers-see-big-upside-by-accepting-bitcoins/
